On the fringes of sage grouse range, many populations are in jeopardy of becoming extinct and others have vanished altogether, said Braun, considered by many the preeminent authority on these prairie birds.

Loss of habitat, the same reason given by hunters and wildlife professionals all across North America for vanishing populations of sharp-tailed grouse--and sage grouse and prairie chickens in other parts of the country--has occurred in some areas of Alaska as well.

After it was revealed that campaigners from the Calder Valley were leading the drive to ban grouse hunting, Countryside Alliance campaigns assistant Jack Knott said: "The information was based on a campaign of the perceived political nature of shooting over evidence-led facts.

The industry claims at least 40,000 people take part in grouse shooting annually and that it supports the equivalent of 2,500 jobs, generates PS150million for the economy and invests PS100million a year into conservation.

The anecdotal reports were encouraging: Newspaper accounts from Oregon's sagebrush country told of ranchers seeing more sage grouse than had been spotted in years, along with other species that depend on a healthy high desert ecosystem.

Fish and Wildlife Service determined the population of Western sage grouse was declining and may require federal protection, the flightless bird has become one of the most important issues for the Department of the Interior, Western land owners, the energy industry and environmentalists alike.

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